LOCAL AND GENERAL

Wairarapa Times-Age, 9 July 1942, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Part of Street Closed. That part of Herbert Street nearest Manners Street, Wellington, has been closed to all vehicular traffic, and rope barriers have been stretched across the road as an extra precaution. The reason for this action is earthquake damage to a theatre wall fronting the street. /nppea] Boards. Now that the Armed Forces Appeal Boards are considering the appeals of men who may ultimately be sent overseas for service, the Dominion executive of the New Zealand Returned Services’ Association has decided to represent to the Government that each board should include at least one ex-service-man of the present war. Body of Missing Man Found. The body of Stanley John Friis, who had been missing from his home in Lower Hutt since June 25, was discovered on Tuesday afternoon in a stream which runs into the Hutt River about a mile south of Haywards. Mr Friis was a married man, aged 50, and was employed by the Wellington City Corporation Milk Department. Poor Handwriting.

Notice has been given that at the next meeting of the Wellington School Committees and Educational Association the following motion will be moved:—“That this meeting expresses its concern at the comparatively poor quality of writing of children on leaving school and urges the Headmasters’ Association to give serious consideration to the making of representations to the authorities with a view to having set a standard of writing in the schools.”

Waterside Works’ Union

The executive of the Wellington Waterside Workers’ Union yesterday decided to invite applications lor membership for the duration of the war. The union explains in a statement issued for publication that there are grave difficulties, because of the. military obligations of members, in keeping the membership up to the requisite standard of efficiency, and because of the abnormal shipping conditions' at present the union deems it advisable to increase temporarily its membership by the acceptance of suitable applicants. No Ration Book Racket.

The belief that it would be almost impossible to organise a racket in ration books such as happened in Australia was expressed yesterday by the rationing controller, Mr J. E. Thomas. To begin with, there was no national register in Australia such as the social security registration provided. Furthermore, the ration books in New Zealand had been printed on special paper which would be impossible to duplicate because of the exhaustion of the supplies of paper pulp, and the coupons had been over-printed in a manner that would be difficult to copy.

Building at Standstill. The transference of men and materials from normal building constructional activity to defence work is aptly illustrated in the figures of both number and value represented by building permits issued in the larger centres during April, states the Government Statistician. Permits for the erection of dwellings experienced the most serious setback, the number dropping from a monthly average of 425 during 1941 to only 59 in April, 1942. The total value for all building permits issued in the larger centres amounted to £172,110 in April, 1942, as compared with £334,880 in March, and £526,852 in April, J 941. The numbers and values of dwellings in the four centres and suburbs for April were: Auckland, two dwellings, £1250; Wellington, 12, £9602; Christchurch, five, £4800; Dunedin, one, £9OO.